Category: Somalia

Somalia is a country in the Horn of Africa, bathed by the Indian Ocean. There are 10.8 million residents (2016). The capital is Mogadishu. The current territory of Somalia was dominated by Arabs in the Middle Ages. In the 16th century, the Portuguese explored the area. In the 19th century, Britons and Italians controlled parts of today’s Somalia, which became strategic with the opening of the Suez Canal. In 1960, the parties gained independence and came together. In the following decades, Somalia was the scene of many conflicts. In 1991, the former British part of Somalia, through the Somali National Movement, declared itself an independent republic, like Somaliland, with its capital in Hargeisa. But there was no UN recognition.